DEED Awarded Federal RETAIN Grant

ST. PAUL – The U.S. Department of Labor has awarded the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) a $2.5 million pilot grant through the Retraining Employment and Talent After Injury/Illness Network (RETAIN).

RETAIN funding will test the impact of early intervention strategies that improve stay-at-work/return-to-work outcomes of individuals who experience work disability while employed. Work disability is defined as an injury, illness, or medical condition that has the potential to inhibit or prevent continued employment or labor force participation.

“Injury and illness happen in the workplace on a daily basis,” said DEED Commissioner Shawntera Hardy. “Now more than ever, we need Minnesotans to fully participate in the workforce. This grant will help find innovative and impactful ways to get people back to work after these events.”

“While Minnesota’s workers already have one of the best return-to-work records in the nation,” said Commissioner Ken Peterson, Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, “DLI is excited to partner with the Mayo Clinic, DEED and other state agencies, to put in place early intervention strategies for workers who stay at or return-to-work after an illness or injury.”

The Minnesota RETAIN project will serve Minnesota residents who are unable to perform their regular work due to an injury or illness. The team will involve a closely integrated group of partners with a shared focus on reducing disability and consistently utilizing a proactive approach to either return to work or stay at work.

“We are honored to receive this recognition. For years, Mayo Clinic Occupational Medicine specialists and return-to-work coordinators have dedicated themselves to helping sick and injured employees return to work. This innovative grant will allow us to broaden our efforts and work with our community partners to help hundreds of people in our region safely return to work,” said Clayton Cowl, M.D., chair of the Division of Preventive and Occupational and Aerospace Medicine at Mayo Clinic in Rochester.

While the ultimate goal of the program is to assist employees in staying at or returning to work after injury or illness, the interventions designed will also work to minimize lost productivity.